Bag grab



April 22, 1941. w. G. WEHR 2239,'135

BAG GRAB Filed Des. 24 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. MLL/fl/1 WEH? ATTORNEYS April22, 1941.

W. G. WEH R SAG GRAU Filed Des. 24, 1937 4 SheetQ-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS April 221, 1941.

W. G. HR

BA GRAB 4 SheecsSh 5 Filed Des. 24, 1937 YNW7Y\TOR. WILL/3M a M19? April 22, 1941.

W. G. WEHR BAG GRAB 4 SheetS-Sheet 4 Filed Des. 24, 1957 INVENTOR.

WILL/9M WEM? BY 7/Mm f W ATTORNEY.5

Patented Apr. 22, 1941 STAT-ES PATENT 0FFLCE 3 Glaims.

The .present invention relaces .to. material handling'rand more particularly tothe handling of heavy bags of material.

Heretofore in the arb varioustypes ofgrabs, slings, etc., have been employed in hand1ing heavy bags of material, but these prior art methods have been unsatisfactory anal expansive, and

the principal object of the present invention is the provision of a novel method and novel.equipment f0r handling heavy bags of material, :par

ticularly fine material such as sugar whereby the handling of such inaterial Will -be gr'eatly 'facilitated and the cost thereofgreatly reduced.

Another object 0f the present 'invention isithe proiision of a novel grab for handling heavy bags of material whichcan be easilymanipulated to engage and disenga'geithe load anti which will be reliable and e'fficient in operation.

Another object of the present invention*is the provision cf a novel grab Tor handlingtheavy bagsof material which grab comprises:a plurality of tines that cahbe rea'dily inserted underneath a bag or'bags o'f material andengage underneath thereof. A

Another object of the presentfiinventionds the provisio-n of a novel carrier for an overhead tramrail system especially adapted for Ehe handling of heavy bags of material, so constiucted and arranged that it sah be readily operated er manipulated to pick up'theo'ad and disch'arge the same at a desired point with little if ahy manual handling.

Another object of th present invention is'the provision cf a noyel carrier for an overhead tramrail system said 'carriex' being especially" adapted'for handlingheavybags of mat arial and comprising a grab including aplurality 'oftines adapted. to'be inseited und'erneath'the eges 0fv a bag 01' bags o'f material, and means for n 1anipu-.

this specification, wherein similar reference characters designate 'the corresponding parts throughout the several views, andin which:

Fig. 1 is a side 'e31eVation of.a carrier embodying the present invention supported oniau'overhead monorail system, only a part .of ithe ;latter being shown;

vFig. 2is .azperspective view of the bag grab shoWn inF ig. 1 lifting a 1oad of material in Fig..3 :is an enlarged side elevation of the bag grab shown in the preceding figures;

Fig. 4 is a plan viewof the .bag grab shown in t1m preceding figures;

:Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of the bag grab shown in the preceding figures;

Fig. .6 isafront elevation of the bag grao shown in the preceding figures;

7 is anenl arged side elevation of the forwardenclofone '0f the tines of ehe bag grab shown in the;preceding figures;

-Fig. ;8 isan enlarged;plan of the bine shovvn spectively, of Figs. 7 and. 8;

F ig. 13 isa perspective view of the bag grab shown in the preceding figures being .inserted underneath a load 0f material in bag form held in -a. loading -skid;

While the present invention is susceptible of various=modifications =and alternative constructionys it -is herein illustrated and described a -sembodied.in or ;anDliedlto a.carrier for an over- =:head .-tramrail :systern v:especially designed for -the handling of one :h-undred pound bags of -sugar.- .However, it is to'beunderstood that the inventionyis egually applirzable to the handlihg 0f heavybags rof-0ther material and may be used with material handling 1equipment; nher than ov.erhead tramra;il =SYST?III, various types vof Z:cranes etc. The overhead 'tramrail system in Whi :h thezpreferred :embodiment of theinvention .is incorporatedhisrfor the mosi: part 00mmercia;lly Iknownin theart anal only 1those parts thereof which ar.e necessary 170 a complete Understanding of'the;presentinvention will be;herein illustrated .and described in detail.

.Briefiy stated themethod. o'f handling heavy :bags ;of material. contemplated in the present .invenfiion:comprises:placingthe. bags of material Iin=pztedetermined;;arrangement, 01' having' the :.sarniav placediin: sa;td;a1rangement :inserting the grab shown tines of a grab of speciflc character forming a part of a suitable holst mechanism underneath the bag or bags, and subsequently lifting the load by means of the grab and transporting it to the desired location.

As previously stated, the invention is particularly applicable to an overhead tramrail system ancl is herein shown and described as embodied in such a system.

Referring to the drawings, the reference character A designates a. commercially known electrically propelled open-cab type of tandem carrier adapted to be traveled along the overhead monorail H] of the electrified overhead. tramrail system, under the control of an operator seated in the cab. The carrier A apart from the grab proper which is designated generally by the reference chara.cter B is commercially known in the art and Will not be describecl in detail. Suffice it to say that the carrier A consists of two electrically propelled carriers II an'd I2 connected in tandem and provided With independent electric hoists I3 ancl I4. The traveling and hoisting mechanisms are under the control of an operator in the cab I5.

The bag grab proper, which is more or less U-shaped, is made up of structural shapes or members welded together and comprising a plurality of horizontal tines connected to the lower ends of vertical T-beams 2I and to a horizontal cross member 22 comprlsing angle irons 23 and 24 all welded together in a suitable manner. The upper ends of the T-beams 2I are welded to a horizontal cross member 26 comprising angle irons 21 and 28, which in turn are welded to longitudinally extending spaCed channel members 30 and. 3I forming the upper leg of the U-shaped grab. The ends of the members 30 and 3I are connected together by'plates 32 and 33 welded thereto and the whole assembly is connected to the blocks !6 and I! and of hoists I3 and I4 through the medium of pins 34 and 35 positioned in aligned apertures adjaoent the ends of the channel members 30 and 3I. The upper part of the grab is braced by channel members 31 and 38 welded to the members 30 and 31 and to the free ends of the upper horizontal member 26 and by plates 39 and 40 counected to the channel members 31 and 33 intermediate the ends thereof and. to the upper cross r member 26. A brace 41 is interposed between the members 30 and 3I intermediate the croSs member 26 and. the end pin 34.

The tlnes 20 are of the construction shown in Figs. 7 to 12 incluslve ancl are made up of curved plates 45 ancl 46 welded together and. to a flat horizontal plate 41. The forward end of each tine tapers down as indicated in the above mentioned figures. The radius of curvatureof the curved plates 45 and 46 is about equal to the height of the tine except at the point where the end of the tine tapers down. There the radius of curvature increases gradually to approximate infinity at the end. In addition totapering 01T towards the free ends, as viewed in elevation, the ends of the tines are rounded as ab 48, as viewed in plan. This is clearly shown in Fig. 8. Triangularly shaped plates 49 welded to the upper edge of the tines and to the vertical T-beams 2| strengthen the rear ends 015 the tines against bending under load. The outside tines which are subjected to horizontal Stress in only one direction may be braced along their outside edges as by plates 50 welded thereto and to the ends 015 the lower cross members '22which, as shown,

project slightly beyond the outside tlnes Ior this purpose. The outside curved plates of the end tines are preferably omitted and plain plates substituted therefor, as shown in Figs. 14 and 15 but for the purpose of simplicity all the tines of the grab are shown uniform in Figs. 1 to 13 inclusive.

The tines are adapted to be projectecl underneath a loacl of material in bag form, by inserting the same into the interstices between the bags, and the cross sectlon of the tlnes preferably is such that they substantially fill these interstices, thus preventing the material in the load from shifting and affording a substantial area of contact between the tines and the sides of the bags. The manner in which the load is lifted is clearly shown in Flg. 2. From this figure it will also be readily apparenl; that the spacing of the tines, that is, the distance between adjacent tines, is a function of the size of the bags being handled. Preferably, the Width of thetines is such that ab0ut twenty to forty per cent of the projected area of the bag is supported. The material to be handled, preferably, is placed er piled in a predetermined manner, that is, in such a manner that the bags which engage the tines lie lengthwise thereon; otherwise, the tines cannot be lnserted or withdrawn easily, if at all. The arrangement of the bags making up the load, other than the bottom row thereof, is immaterial. In the event that successive loads are placed one above the other, as ls usually the case, lt is desirable, although not necessary, 130 have the bags of the top row placed parallel to those of the bottom row, ancl successive loads should be placed with adjacent bags in vertical alignment, thus making it easier to insert the tines when it is desired to move the material at some subsequent time.

The arrangement of the bags in the desired manner does not present any problem whatsoever except when the material is being handled for the first time, in which event it may be expeditious to use a suitable form or skid. Such a skid is shown in Fig. 13 and consists of a boxlike struoture C, open at the front ancl toll adapted to hold one load. of material. The boards or planks 52, which form the bottom of the skid run crosswise and are spaced apart 130 provide adequate room for the entrance of the tines of the grab. It will be readily apparent that any type of suitable skid, other than that shown, may be employed. The fact that the grab proper is supported at opposite ends, oy individually operable hoists, provides adequate control thereover and allows the operator of the carrier to manipulate the grab to engage and disengage a load, without the assistance of anyone else.

The rab shown in Figs. 14 and 15 is similar to that shown in the prececling figures, except that it is built up, for the most part, of tubular members welded together. The tines 55, whioh are similar in construction the tines 2ll except the outside o1 end tines which are varied in a manner previously referred to, are welded to a cross member comprising a platze 57 and an angle iron 58 and to the vertical tubular members 59. The upper ends of the vertical tubular members 59 curve forward where they are connected to a tubular cross member 60 directly above the center of gravity of the grab. The grab is adapted to be connected to suitable holst mechanism, such as a carrier comprising only one holst, in any convenient manner as by the chains GI.

A grab especially adapted fr handling a single bag of material is shown in Figs. 16 and 17. As shown in these figures, tne grab comprises two tines 63, similar in construction to the tines 2G, welcled to a. cross member comprising a plate 65 and an angle iron 65 and 130 vertical tubular members 66 and all, the upper ends of Which are bent forward and connected together. Means in the form of a ring 68, connected 120 the members 66 nncl (i'l and locatecl above the centerof gravity of the grab, is providecl for attaching the holst mechanism. 'Ihe grab shown in Figs. 16 and 1'7, like the grab shown in the prececling two figur6s, is adapted t0 b e connect'ed to a single holst.

It is thought that the op'eration of the clevlce Will be apparent to those skilled in the arl; to which lt relates. From the foregoing description of the preferred embocliments of the invention, it Will be apparent that the objects heretofore enumerated and others have been accomplished anal that the present inventiom provides an improved method and novel equipment for handling material in bag form. While the preferred embodiments 01:" the invention have been described in considerable detail, it Will be reaclily apparent that the invention may be otherwise embodied. The present invention is not limited to the particular construction shovvn ancl described and it is the inten'tion to cover hereby all adaptations modifications, and varlations thereof coming within the practice of those skilled in the art 150 which it relats ancl Wlthin the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Ha.ving thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a grab of the character referred to adapted to be connected to a. mechanical holst and handle large heavy bags of material, the

combination of a supporting member, a, plurality of substantially horizontally extending parallel tines connectecl to sald supporting member anti adapted tobe inserted lengthwise underneath opposite sides of a substantially horizontally positioned large heavy bag of material and lift the same, said tines having bag-engaging sides diverging towards the bottom.

2. In a, grab of the character referred to adapted be cannected to a mechanical holst and handle large heavy bags of material, the combination 0f a supporting member, a plurality of substantially horizontally extending parallel tines connected t0 saicl supporting member and adapted. to be lnserted lengthwise into the apartures' between adjacent large heavy bags of material arranged side by sicle in a substantially horizontal plane and engage underne-ath opposlte sioles of a bag ancl lift the same seid. tines being generally triangular shaped transversely and having ba&engaging sicles diverging toward the bottom.

3. In a grab of the character referred adapted to be connected t0 a. mechanical holst and handle lauge heavy bags of material, the combination of a supporting member, a plurality of substantially horizontally extending parallel tines connecteol to saicl supporting member ancl adapted 110 be inserted lengthwise into the apertures between acljacent large heavy bags cf material arranged siole by side in a substantially horizontal plane and engaging underneath opposite sicles of a bang and lift the same, said. tines being generally triangular shaped transversely and having arcuate bag-engaging sides diverging to- Wards the bottom. 1

WILLIAM G. WEHR. 

